Messing With Feelings
by HanaxSpana
Summary: About how James and Lily went from hate to love from fifth year.
1. Carrot Peelings and Spitting Napkins

"Curse the Marauders !" Lily murmured to herself as she picked out the carrot peelings from her hair while Sasha Betteridge read _teen which weekly_ on her bed, whilst every now and then pausing to ask Lily her thoughts on the latest gossip of the wizard world.

"Hey, Lils, what do you think about Alexis Polmers' new shoes, I so don't think they go with that blue dress" Alexis Polmer was Sasha's favourite star, and she practically stalked her continually talking about her when she wasn't gossiping aobut boys or clothes.

"Sasha haven't you got more important things to do than just read about celebrities and their so called perfect lives?" She hated it when people seemed to think celebrities where more important than anything else in the world, it was just so sad!

"Nope!" She laughed, but stopping after getting a death stare from Lily "oh come on, what else am I supposed to do?"

" I dunno, homework?" No-one ever seemed to do homework at Hogwarts accept her.

"It's like you don't even know me!" She giggled, and continued to flick through her magazine, ignoring the second glare Lily was giving her.

Then their other friend Kara Shaw burst through the door holding what looked like an old tatty piece of parchment.

"What on earth is that?" Lily questioned as she picked out the last piece of carrot from her hair, throwing it angrily in the bin.

"I..Grabbed...It...Off...Remus" She panted, throwing herself onto her bed and throwing the parchment off Lily.

"And what is it exactly?" Lilly searched the paper and saw nothing on it.

"I don't know, but they seemed to want it quite a lot after I took it, so I ran away with it" Kara smirked. "So do you think there's a spell you can use to reveal what's on it?"

"Does a dog bark?" Lily laughed.

"What's a dog?" Kara looked confused, Lily was always coming out with strange muggle words she'd never heard of before.

"It's just a pet muggles have, anyway the point is of course I know a revealing spell," Lily flicked her wand out of her pocket and pointed it at the parchment "Disendium," she said, waiting for something to happen. At that moment the parchment was covered in words.

"Result!" Kara cried "What does it say?"

"It says:

_Prongs would like to say that Lily is a nosy idiot, and should keep her prying eyes away from things that are none of her buisness_

_Padfoot would like to add that Lily needs to work on her wand skills if she can't even work out the simplest revealing charms._

_Moony alsowould like to say that Kara is a dirty theif, and should never have taken the parchment that the idiot Lily tried to open_

_Finally Wormtail wants to say that Sasha should stop pocking her nose into the buisness of this parchment and carry on reading her poxy magazine_

_yours faithfully_

_Prongs, Padfoot, Moony, and Wormtail._

"

"What the hell was that?" Sasha exclaimed, leaping off her bed – finally putting down her magazine – and snatching the parchment out of Lily's hands "And what kind of stupid nicknames are Prongs, Padfoot, Moony, and Wormtail!"

"They're always calling themselves that, and I'm guessing that's just some stupid enchantment to stop people seeing what's really on it" Kara explained.

"Yeah well the main thing is, they clearly want this map, and we've got it!" Lily laughed. Earining a confused look off Sasha and Kara "What? They threw carrot peelings in my hair, they deserved it!"

"I think we've had a bad influence on our good little Lily" Kara giggled.

"I can be bad!" Lily sulked.

"Ok then, what was the baddest thing you've ever done?" Sasha asked, knowing Lily's never done anything bad in her life considering she's known her ever since they where at first school.

"Well..."Lily pondered, not thinking of anything "Am I really that much of joy kill?"

"Nah, you're OUR joy kill" Kara smirked, tracing over the initials her, Sasha, and Lily had carved into her bed post and a pact of friendship first year.

"Just because I prefer studying to screaming and running around the school naked" She smirked at Kara because she had done this as a dare at the last day in fourth year. Bringing this up got her a pillow in the face.

"You promised you wouldn't bring that up!" She shrieked.

"Well stop calling me a kill joy and that bit of information might not leak into the school gossip chain"

"You wouldn't!" Kara stared amazed and Lily's cunning and cleverness that she only showed in lessons.

"Oh but I would" She grinned.

"Fine, fine Lily, you're the life of the party, without you our lives would be nothing but an orb of misery and dullness.

"That's better," Lilly smiled triumphantly and got out her transfiguration essay on animegas and they're forms , she still had over a foot to wright, and she wasn't in the mood for school work at that moment

"But one fore thing Lily?" Kara asked.

"What now Kara?" Lily demanded irritably.

"You've still got a bit of lettuce in your hair."

* * *

"Did you see the look on her face!" Screamed Sirius in fits of laughter just after Lily stormed out of the Great Hall.

"You didn't need to do that Padfoot" James murmured, nibbling at a raspberry scone. It was bad enough getting rejected by Lily for the billionth time, but watching her get hurt for it was just sad.

"Are you kidding me, no-one makes a fool out of the Marauders James, it's about time she learnt that" Sirius nodded in what he thought was an inteligent way, but it just made him look like a complete cocky idiot.

"I think she learn't that after the tarentalegra spell you put on her and she spent the entire charms lesson uncontrollably dancing"James cringed at the thought of it.

"That's only because she put the silencio charm on you because she was in a mood with us!" Sirius argued, he hated seeing James put down.

"Yeah, but that's only because I put the rictasempra charm on her so she couldn't stop laughing," James argued.

"No I'm pretty sure that one was after she hexed you after you tipped Snivulles upside-down," Moony questioned.

"How long have you guys been fighting?" Peter asked, taking time to pull himself away from the piece of toast he was engulfing.

"Apparently ever since we first met" James groaned, he was never going to get Lily to like him.

"I know what will cheer you up Prongs" Sirius said.

"I don't think anything could cheer me up considering you just through a bowl of vegetable peelings on the girl I've been crushing on for five years" James muttered going back to studying for a care of mythical creatures exam he had second period, and breakfast was the only place he could do it.

"Not even a prank on the Slytherins?" Sirius asked, knowing that James could never turn down making a fool out of Bellatrix, Snape, and all they're mates.

"You know me too well Padfoot!" James grinned, throwing his book aside and following Sirius, Remus, and Peter out of the hall.

* * *

"Yes, alright I admit it was funny watching all of the Slytherins' napkins coming to life and spit in their faces whilst singing Gryfindoors rule, but it was the kind of silly immature thing that makes me hate the Marauders!" Lily ranted to Sasha and Kara as they walked back up to the Gryfindoor common room for free period.

"How do you know it was the Marauders?" Sasha asked, already knowing the answere. Lily didn't need to reply as they walked through the portrait door to be faced with the Marauders stood on the table bowing as everyone gathered around high fiving them.

"God they're just attention seeking gits!" Lily cursed glaring at them.

"Remus is aright!" Sasha argued, gazing at him through the crowed, but Lily was to wrapped up in her hatred for the Marauders, and Kara was going up to Sirius and high fiving him for either of them to notice Sasha's sudden affections for Remus.

"_Why of all people does Kara need to be best mates with Black"_ Lily thought to herself. She knew that not even both their families hatred could stop those two being friends, so how could she?


	2. Geniuses and Werewolves

**Authors Note:**

Now I apologise in advance for a huge flaw in this chapter, but it fitted in with defining the characters pretty well. I am ashamed because I have given them a divination class when Trelawney was the first teacher of it, and she started after she gave the prophecy about Harry, anyway lets just pretend that never happened for the sake of this chapter, eh?

Also I'm sorry if I don't talk about Peter much, I have just never forgiven him for turning James and Lily into Voldemort, but I'll try and pretend that never happened when writing this.

Thank you to Arkell26 for my first review :-) wasn't sure if anyone would read this at all, but just me being insecure. Hope you enjoy this chapter., and don't forget to review!

* * *

Chapter 2: Geniuses and werewolves

Lily, Sasha, and Kara battled their way up to their room only to find Shanice and Violet, the room mates from hell, spread across the floor.

"Ugh, look at what the giant threw up!" Violet snarled, going back to painting her nails.

"Whatever, Davids," Kara sighed, sweeping past both of them and flopping onto her bed to get out her arithmancy homework to copy off Lily.

"Do you really need to copy off me?" Lily moaned, getting her homework out as well.

"Lily, if I didn't copy off you then you would get the blame for my bad work" Kara explained, earning a confused look off Lily.

"And how did you figure that out?" Lily sighed, expecting a stupid answer which had nothing to do with what she just asked – and that's what she got.

"Well, if I don't copy off you then I will fail the test, therefore I will fail and get a detention, then my mom will find out, have a go at me, then be mad at you for not encouraging me to do better in my work, it's obvious!"

"Oh yes, how silly of me to think that you could actually do a good piece of homework for yourself" Lily said sarcastically.

"Hey! I'll have you know that my divination homework got praises from she teacher, she said my work showed I clearly had the inner eye, and my charts where commendable" Kara bragged "When you only got an A"

"That's because it's a load of nonsense!" Lily wailed, she was sick of Trelawney telling her she didn't have the 'inner eye' and all that nonsense, she was going to drop divination as quick as possible.

"Maybe I do have the inner eye, Lils, maybe I accurately predicted the future and I'm some sort of genius?" Kara gloated, but got the smile wiped her face as both her friends just laughed in her face.

"You, a genius?" Lily spluttered through fits of laughing, but stopped when she got the death glare off Kara. "Come one, you put that tomorrow school will be cancelled dew to all the house elves disappearing, and in the future you will become the minister of magic! How can you possibly think that's going to happen?"

"Ok then, maybe it wont, but still pretty imaginative isn't it? Maybe that's what I'm a genius at!" Kara suggested, but guessed that probably wasn't it due to the worried glances Lily and Sasha exchanged.

"Look I've got to go to muggle studies" Lily groaned.

"I don't see why you go to muggle studies when you live with muggles, the first chance I get to get out of it I'm doing it!" Sasha never really understood lilies love for learning.

"It's called school rules, you clearly haven't heard of them. Haven't you got a lesson to go to?" Lily tutted.

"Well we've got history of magic, but I've had enough sleep for today" Kara joked.

"You're unbelievable, I should report this"

"But you're not because you're our favourite-est frriend ever?" Kara begged batting her eyelashed.

"Well that's not even a word but fine, you're the one that's going to fail all your tests and not get a decent job because I can't always be there to help you with your work, neither can the teachers, so you need to buckle down and..."

"God Lils, save us the speech and go to you class,"

"Not while you're bunking off doing nothing!" Lily protested.

"Ok number one – you're not going to miss a class for anything in the world, not matter what I do, and number two what am I going to need history of magic for? I'm telling you one day even after Binns is dead he'll be droning on about the giant wars" Kara laughed at her own joke.

"Fine, waste your life away making parchment aeroplanes, try not to do anything stupid while I'm gone,"

"Why would I do anything stu... OK you're right, have fun!" She shouted after Lily as she flounced out of the room.

* * *

"I'm hungry!" Sirius wailed as the Marauders went up to the Gryfindoor common room after dinner.

"You've just eaten, how on earth can you be hungry?" Remus was always amazed at the fact that given the opportunity (and three buckets – he learn't that the hard way) Sirius could down half his body weight in food and still be hungry afterwards.

"He's always hungry, Moony, it's what makes him Sirius. Without it he'd just be a self obsessed moron with no good qualities or knowledge of anything useful" James laughed, saying the password to the fat lady so the portrait swung forwards.

"Hey! What about my charming good looks, and witty banter?" Sirius said.

"Did you seriously just day banter?" James stared at him.

"Yeah, I was hoping you wouldn't notice that" Sirius murmured. "Anyway, enough insulting Sirius, why don't we go down to the kitchens?"

"You can, I've got an Ancient Runes essay to do," James yawned at the thought of doing Ancient Runed.

"And I need to practise turning rats into goblets" Peter muttered, he had always been the shyest of the Marauders.

"Seriously, Wormtail? We learned that is second year," Siruis taunted.

"Yeah, well I never understood it" He blushed.

"So you can turn yourself into a rat every full moon, but you can't even turn a rat into a goblet, sometime I worry about you wormy" Sirius patted Peter on the head sarcastically.

"Sirius, keep it down!" Remus whispered "We don't need the whole of Gryfindoor knowing that you're all illegal animagus', let alone my, uh.."

"Furry little secret?" Sirius chuckled, he had come up with the name as soon as he found out Remus was a werewolf in first year.

"I wish you wouldn't call it that," Remus muttered.

"Speaking of your furry little secret" Remus groaned at Sirius' remark, but chose to ignore it because he would never win against Sirius. "Isn't it the full moon tomorrow"

"Yeah, I'm going to Poppy the new nurse tomorrow, then she'll take me down to the Womping Willow." Remus shivered at the though of his transformation.

"Don't forget us, we'll meet you there" James chimed it.

"Yeah, but, I might hurt you, and," But James woudn't let him finish.

"We promised we wouldn't let you go through it on your own, and we have done ever since first year, so I'm afraid your stuck with us now."

"Fine, but I'll never forgive myself if anything where to happened to you"

"And it won't, promise" James encouraged him. He hated seeing friends suffer, well Snivullus and the Slytherins where fine to torture because they where all back stabbing scumbags, but if it's a friend in danger then he'd rather die then see them get killed, or seriously injured.

"So it's settled, we'll meet at the Shrieking shack tomorrow night, agreed?"

"Agreed," James didn't even hesitate.

"I guess so," Remus gave in.

"Wormtail? Anyone in or are you in worm land?" Sirius joked, slapping his arm.

"Ow! But sure I'll come" he said in a quiet voice.

"OK, so there's only one more thing for me to do," Sirius stated happilly.

"What?" The others asked.

"Go get some chocolate!" He grinned, striding off.

* * *

Lily was on her way back from divination, which Kara and Sasha finally showed up, but Lily has suspected it was just so Kara could prove her genius, then because of what she'd told them second period,and she thought they'd just spent the day messing about rather then go to any of their lessons like they normally do on a Friday. And sure enough the whole lesson Kara stared into the crystal ball spewing a load of rubbish about Sasha living alone with ten cats whilst Trelawney sang her praises, and after they had gone off so Sasha could show Kara this cute Ravenclaw she'd seen the day before. So Lily decided to go to lunch on her own then spent half an hour in the library studying.

Just as she passed the kitchens she bumped into none other than Sirius Black with his hands full of chocolate.

"Hey Evans!" He grinned.

"Go away Black" She snarled.

"Come on, can't we just be mates?" He asked, giving her puppy eyes.

"Oh, I'm sorry, but the carrot peelings say other wise," She cringed thinking back to how embarrassing that was with the whole school laughing at them and high fiving the idiot Black.

"Yeah, but that was just a joke, you can take a joke right?" She glared back at him "Ouch, I take that one back" He chuckled.

"Just run back to your little friends, torture an innocent first year, or pull pranks and Slytherins" All the typical things Sirius would do even before breakfast.

"Nah, I'd rather hang out with you," he said nudging her.

"Well I'd rather hang out with an Acromantuala then talk to you, Black," She scowled and stormed off, but Sirius just persisted on following her, dropping chocolate as he went.

"Come on, you love me really" He smirked. "I'll give you a chocolate bar?" But that wasn't getting him anywhere.

"Look, why would I want to hang out with someone that has tortured me since first year?" Lilly growled at him trying to avoid eye contact.

"Because of my charm and great looks? He grinned, dramatically flicking his hair.

"Don't you mean ignorance and vanity?" Lily said sarcastically "Now if you don't mind I have to go and to work, you should try it one of these days"

"I like to focus on the more important things, like my hair, I mean it takes a long time getting it to look this good!" Lily just ignored him and stormed off, and it was clear Sirius wasn't going to get anywhere so he just wandered off whilst stuffing a chocolate bar in his mouth.

* * *

"Are you ready Moony?" James asked as he took Remus up to the hospital wing.

"I'm sure I'll be fine, like all the other times, it's you I'm more worried about" Remus muttered as he stared at James, wishing he wouldn't put himself into so much danger for him.

"Don't start that again, I said you're stuck with us and there's no going back. We're not going to let you be alone in such a hard time" James sounded really worried so Remus knew he should just give in or they'll just come anyway.

"Fine, now I'll see you at the Shrieking Shack, yeah?"

"Of course, but try not to lead Poppy into us or we're stuffed"

"Who do you take me for, Sirius?" Remus laughed with James.

"OK, good point, anyway got to go, see you" James babbled, then ran off to meet up with Peter and Sirius.

James never liked the feeling of turning into an animagus, but once it was over it was pretty fun being a stag, unless Sirius liked playing a game of chase the Stag in his dog form, which unfortunately was one of those times. Peter in his rat form was scampering about squeaking wildly trying not to get trodden on. But Sirius' dog ears heard voices coming from the corridor and motioned the others to shut up.

"OK, Remus, you've had your medicine and try to keep calm, I'll go now, good luck" They could hear Madam Pomphrey (Poppy) telling Remus.

"When the cost was clear they emerged from the room and stood around Remus, James nudging him with his head encouragingly. Remus was to busy concentrating on his transformation to acknowledge it, so the others just went outside to wait for him because James couldn't stand seeing him go through so much pain.

The four of them spent the night running around Hogsmead, James and Sirius messing around whilst Peter ran trailing behind them. Things where going fine until Remus – in his werewolf form accidentally scratched Sirius in the arm. He whimpered slightly but carried on running.

"_Remus is going to hate himself for weeks for that one mistake" _James though to himself, but carried on through the night.

"Moony? Moony are you awake?" Sirius called from the bed next to him.

"Well now I am, wait what are you doing here? Oh God I hurt you didn't I?" Remus started getting worked up, how could he have put his best mates in danger like that?

"What are the chances that you'll believe me if I said no?" But Remus didn't even answer him.

"Is it bad?"

"No, just a little cut on my arm" Sirius argued "Now eat your chocolate before I do"

"I don't care about the stupid chocolate Padfoot, now it wouldn't be nothing to worry about if you're in a hospital wing wearing a bandage, would it?"

"Just showing off my battle scars" He grinned, pointing heroically at the bandage.

"Battle scars? Oh god I didn't fight you did I?"

"No, it's just a saying, stop worrying! I'm only here because Evans caught me on my way upstairs and sent me straight here. I had to say I caught it on a door"

"Real good excuse there" Remus said in a sarcastic voice.

"Well it fooled Evans, I think, now shut up and eat your chocolate it'll make you feel better." And luckily he did.


	3. Doris and the Donut Dash

Chapter 3: Doris and the donut dash

"Lily, we're coming to herbology, you can get off my arm now" Sasha groaned as Lily dragged her to herbology.

"Yeah, well I don't trust you two, you'll end up running off and spend the rest of your day either reading a magazine or gossiping in the common room" Lily was right, but she didn't have to say it out loud.

"You know us too well!" Kara laughed, yanking her hand from Lily's grip.

"Don't even think about turning around Kara Shaw and I will hex you to oblivion!" Lily jokingly shouted at Kara.

"Don't worry Lils, I'm coming!" Sasha said, almost too optimistically.

"Because it does" Kara groaned. "It's that stupid Ravenclaw she's been going on about for weeks now, the one she was stalking whilst you where at a boring prefect meeting."

"I do not stalk!" Sash argued, crossing her arms.

"Sash, you waited outside the Ravenclaw tower for an hour before he came out and you could 'accidentally' bump into him" Kara sighed.

"Oh God, not another one!" Lily gasped dramatically "The last time you fell for a guy you fell into the lake when you where dangling out a tree trying to listen to his conversation, just in case he mentioned you!"

"Yeah, but it's different this time!" Sasha argued.

"What, like it was with Amos Diggory?"

"Kara! I told you never to tell anyone about that, it was a mistake" Sasha yelped, hitting Kara with a school book.

"God, enough with the gossiping, I think we both know that Sasha is a fool when it comes to fancying people, and no matter how many times you tell Kara not to say anything, she will" Lily eneded the conversation right as they arrived at greenhouse 3.

"Now guys, this is what's known as a _lesson, _and this is a _classroom_" Lily said in a stupid tone as Kara hit her with her bag.

"Anyway, technically it's a greenhouse" Sasha pointed out.

"Still, how many times have you been in here?"

"I go to lessons" Sasha said sounding a little hurt, but Lily just gave her a funny look "Mostly" getting another strange look "OK, I sometimes go to classes, happy now!"

"No." Lily murmured, frantically searching the classroom.

"Why?" The other two asked simultaneously.

"Cause the only spaces left are next to the damn Marauders that's why" She growled as she stormed over with her nose in the air, and sat as far away from them on her seat until she practically fell off leaving the others to just follow on behind her.

"Now shoot with me with the killing curse and call me Doris!" Sirius exclaimed, getting a lot of weirded out looks. "If it isn't my best friend Lily Evans!"

"Just shut it Black" She snapped at him.

"Is she not in a very good mood today?" Peter asked precariously.

"Well she was until she had to sit next to you lot," Kara explained.

"Why-ever not?" Sirius asked, obviously already knowing what the answer was going to be.

"Well, let's go back to the custard incident, and the ice cube incident, and the broccoli incident, and the broomstick incident..." Kara began to say.

"Oh no! The broomstick incident was my best work yet!" Sirius cried, but changed him answer after a deadly glance from Lily "I mean – oh I do regret the broomstick incident very much, I mean it wasn't funny at all watching Evans being constantly jabbed with a broomstick all day whilst not even Mcgonagal could stop it" Sirius said in the most innocent voice possible, trying to keep in fits of laughter.

"Come on Padfoot, give the girl a break" James muttered from his herbology book. Sirius couldn't figure out why, but every time James

was around Lily her completely changed from his funny best mate who's always up for a laugh, to this embarrassed love stricken fool.

"I don't need your sympathy, Potter" Lily spat out his last name as if it was the dirtiest word she could say.

"Well sorry for caring" He replied, not even looking her in the face.

"I don't need sympathy of a pathetic guy who's been not only torturing me and making funny of me since first year, but has also been trying to ask me out as well!"

"Come on, Evans give the guy a break, most of the taunting was me after all" Sirius reasoned.

"And who was right by your side helping?"

"Uhhh, Remus?" Sirius joked, trying to lighten the mood.

"Just shut it Black, or I'll set the finger eating shrew on you" Lily threatened.

"OH NO!" Sirius exclaimed sarcastically, but Lily just glared at him "OK then, where are you going to get a finger eating shrew, eh?"

"You really don't listen in class do you?"

"I like to call it independent learning" The argument going on between Sirius and Lily was just getting to boring, so the other five just chatted amongst themselves, read to break up a fight.

"Now class, I'm going to hand out a pot containing a finger eating shrew to each pair, be carefull not to wind it up though, or you will loose a finger" The young Mrs Sprout called across the classroom.

"Oh God" was the only thing Sirius could say.

* * *

It was after herbology at lunch, and Sirius, James, Remus, and Peter where lying outside in the blazing sun under the willow tree by the lake.

"We should be pulling a prank on the Slytherins right now" Sirius groaned, skimming a pebble across the water.

"God, Padfoot, it's the hottest day of the year and you want to waste it on the Slytherins?" Remus muttered from his charms book.

"You can talk, you spend all of your spare time reading!" Sirius joked.

"Yeah, well it's a lot more productive then picking on kids younger than you!" Remus argued, flipping through his book taking notes.

"God, you're starting to sound like evens" Sirius laughed, throwing another stone.

"Ugh this is too hot, why don't we go swimming?" James suggested, getting up and stretching.

"I thought you'd never ask!" Sirius leapt up excitedly practically yanking up the other two.

"But my work!" Remus moaned, picking It all up up stuffing it in his school bag and trying to keep up with James and Sirius – who where running back to their common rooms to put on swimming trunks and get towels.

"For God sake, Moony, have some fun for once!" Sirius yelled behind him as he charged through the main doors.

"Sirius Black, James Potter, stop running immediately!" Professor Mcgonagall yelled at them as she left the Great Hall.

"Soz Minny, but this is important!" Sirius called as he charged up the stairs, almost falling through missing step as he went.

"Sorry about them, Proffesor Mcgonagall" Moony apologised for his friends stupidity as him and Peter followed them.

"Just tell them they're in detention with Filch tomorrow at eight, sharp," Mcgonagall told him before walking up to her office.

Lily, Sasha, and Kara where sitting next to the lake that afternoon. Lily was staring up at the sky just thinking to herself peacefully, Sasha was staring at the Ravenclaw boy (who was lying on the other side of the willow tree with his mates), and Kara was ripping out the grass and throwing it into the wind.

"I'm Bored!" Kara moaned, thumping her fist onto the grass.

"Well you're always bored, Kara" Lily said tiredly, sick of Kara interrupting her peace to moan every five minutes.

"That's because every thing we do is boring!" She yelled "I'm gonna go and find Sirius, he knows how to have fun"

"Yeah, and he also knows how to be a complete and utter twat" Lilly growled.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I'll just sit here in a huff and be bored then!"

"Ok, girls, don't start a fight" Sasha murmered, not bothering to rip her eyes off the Ravenclaw.

"Whatever" Lily sighed, she wasn't going to waste her breath on Sirius Black "Anyway, who is this Ravenclaw you keep going on about?"

"It's Tom Warley" Kara explained.

"No, the sixth year? Sasha he's way out of your league!" Lily laughed.

"Why do you think I'm admiring from afar?"

"More like stalking from afar!" Kara joked, getting a slap off Sasha.

"Wow! That's the first time today you've bothered to look away from him, this is progress" Lily said sarcastically.

"Your hilarious Lily." Sasha blankly replied. She was going to say something else, but was interrupted by screams in the background.

"Oh God, It's not..." Lily started, but her question was answered by the yelling in the distance.

"HEY PRONGS WATCH ME DIVE!" They could here Sirius shouting, so that everyone around the lake you where enjoying the quiet looked around at them.

"Trust the Marauders to do something stupid like this!" Lily moaned, going back to staring at the sky.

"What do you mean? That looks like great fun, why don't we join them?" Kara jumped up and down excitedly.

"Yeah. Sounds like great fun." Lily grumbled.

"Come on Lils, you yourself said you weren't a fun kill" Sasha teased, trying to pull Lily off the floor.

"I'm not!" She shouted defensivly.

"Prove it then!" Kara and Sasha taunted "Come swimming with us and everyone else!" Lily had no choice, because if she didn't she would once again end up being the odd one, just sat whaching every one else have fun (because at this point most of the other students had cottoned onto the idea and joined the Marauders in the lake). So Lily reluctantly followed Kara and Sasha up to their dorm to get changed.

"I look frumpy!" Lily moaned as she put on her spotty swimming costume.

"No, of course you don't Lils, just slightly odd looking in your granny costume that's all!" Sasha taunted, admiring herself in her red bikini in the mirror.

"Come on Lils!" Kara encouraged, emerging from the bathroom in shorts and a t-shirt on top of her saffron blue swimming costume. "You can borrow my other costume, save you looking like my nan, eh?"

"Whatever, as long as I don't have to wear this baggy thing" Lily moaned, yanking at her costume.

When they where finally ready they skipped down to the lake, to find most of the school had shown up now, and where all laughing and screaming in the lake.

"Uh, I'm not so sure" Lily muttered, looking back wishfully at the school.

"Lils, do you want to be a fun kill?" Kara asked.

"No, but,"

"DO YOU?"She persisted.

"No."

"Then you're coming swimming with us whether through your own way in, or ours" She grinned mischievously.

"Fine, I'm coming!" Lily shouted.

"Ohh, I was hoping me and Sash where going to get to throw you in" Kara fake cried, consequently getting a punch off Lily.

"Come on! Lets jump in!" Sasha insistedalthough it was only because Tom was in there she wanted to go in in the first place. So Lily, Kara, and Sasha took of their shorts and jeans and put them in a pile by the lake with their towels, then all held hands and leapt into the lake screaming because of how cold it was.

"Well, well, well ladies, come to join our festivities!" Sirius greeted as he swam over to them.

"Well, me and Sasha have, Lily just came because we forced her to" Kara grinned.

"Well, I don't care how you got her here, she came!" Sirius grinned. "So, me, Prongs, Moony, and Wormsy where about to play donut dash, wanna play?"

"What on earth is donut dash?" Lily asked precariously.

"Marauder tradition on the first swim in the lake," Sirius explained seriously "Two people compete, and someone else, usually Moony, will make two donuts hover near the other side of the lake. The two people have to retrieve the donuts and eat them as quick as possible, then swim back."

"Sounds great!" Kara cheered.

"Sounds pathetic" Lily groaned, knowing she was going to be forced into it anyway.

"Nah, it's great!" Sirius ignored the hint of hatred in Lily's voice "You're looking at the three year in a row champion!"

"Well prepare to be beaten" Kara laughed, and her and Sirius swam over to James, Remus, and Peter.

"Come on Lils, it'll be a laugh" Sasha encouraged, dragging her over to where the Marauders and Kara where laughing at a second year who had dived into the lake, but missing and sliding onto a rock, then back onto the grass.

"So, come on, are you doing this donut dash or what?" Lily decided if she was going to at least try to have fun she wasn't going to sulk.

"Now, I guess" James muttered, suddenly changing moods as soon as he saw Lily looking stunning in an emerald green swimming costume that brought out her gorgeous green eyes.

"Oi, Prongs" James was snapped out of his Lily trance by Sirius yelling at him "Me verses you first! Kara you judge, and Moony and Lily can hover donuts over there" Sirius pointed vaguely towards the other side of the lake, then produced a box of donuts, putting them on the side of the lake and lining himself up with James.

"Does he always take it this seriously?" Lily moaned to Remus.

"Yes, and if you don't he'll probably kill you" Remus laughed, hovering a donut carefully and sending it to where Sirius pointed, Lily then copying him.

"OK, guys!" Kara shouted, everyone now watching the famous Marauder donut dash "On your marks, get set, GO!"

Lily watched as James and Sirius frantically swam to the other side of the lake, practically engulfed the donut, and charged back over to them again.

"And Sirius wins!" Kara called excitedly.

"Come on, not again!" James moaned, watching Sirius do his usual victory dance.

"Who dares face the champion?" Sirius asked.

"ME!" Kara yelled rushing over "prepare to be beaten, Black!"

"You wish" He laughed, going back to the starting point.

It was the same as the last time, and Lily could tellthis was going to get boring. Over and over again Sirius beat Sasha, Remus, Peter, James again, and some cocky fourth year.

"Right then!" Lilly shouted "My turn"

Everyone just stared in shock, had the goody goody two shoes Lily Evans just suggested to do the donut dash with none other than Sirius Black? Yes she had.

"OK then?" Remus was still in shock from what he had just heard.

So Lily floated next to Sirius, and when Sasha yelled go she swam as if she would never swim again. This was because she was determined to prove to the rest of the school that she wasn't a fun kill. She seized the donut as if it was the philosopher's stone, and literally inhaled it, then took off like a rocket. She was determined to prove herself.

"And Lily is the winner?" Kara said, wondering if she really had just said that. There was a moment of silence, and then everyone accept for Sirius erupted with applause.

"How has this happened!" Sirius moaned, splashing Lily playfully for stealing his title.

Lily, for once, was actually laughing with SIRIUS BLACK, he wasn't that bad apparently.

* * *

"Great, detention with Filch!" Sirius moaned "This is what we get for having fun."

"No, Padfoot, this is what we get for charging through the school and answering back to Minnie" James moaned, he had a lot more things he would rather be doing on his Friday nights.

"Well that still doesn't a detention" He muttered and he and James walked into Filch's office to come face to face with none other then Severus Snape.

"What is this rat bag doing here" Sirius asked furiously.

"Same reason for you, breaking the rules" Filch snapped "You're already five minutes late so come on – and no talking!" He added marching out of the room leaving Severus, James, and Sirius to follow

"Prongs, I can't put up with a night of the two people I hate the most!" Sirius whispered to James as they where lead to the Great hall.

"What about your parents?"

"Well yeah, but I try to forget about them"

"Shut it, Black!" Filch shouted as he handed James a mop, Sirius polish, and Severus a knife.

"You" Filch pointed at James "Mop the floor, you" He pointed to Sirius "Polish the tables and benches, and you" He said pointing to Severus "Scrape the gum from the tables" Filch smiled at the revenge he was getting on the three of them after they had treated him.

"But this is the house elves job!" Sirius wailed, mainly because he didn't know how to even use polish.

"Well it wouldn't be much of a punisment if the house elves did it, would it?" Filch laughed "Now get on with it! If you do it properly you should be done by at least Midnight."

"MIDGNIGHT? For running through the school?" James moaned.

"Should have thought about that before you did it, shouldn't you? Back in the day I would have you chained up in the dungeon for a week only living on bread and water!" Filch smiled at the thought of it, then strode out of the hall to go and find his cat.

"Prongs, we need to get out of this, now, I need my beauty sleep!" Sirius shivered at the thought of it.

"Let's just not focus on getting into more trouble, yeah?" James suggested as he raced around with the broom trying to sweep as quickly as possible. So Sirius just sighed and got on with polishing the tables roughly, staying on the opposite side of the hall as Severus at all times.

When they finally finished at ten to twelve James and Sirius slumped up to their rooms, and flopped onto their beds – falling asleep as soon as their heads hit the pillow before they even got changed.

* * *

**Authors Note:**

**God that took me a long time! I'm not very good at long chapters :P Anyway hope you enjoyed the donut dash, wasn't quite so sure about that idea, but it was fun. PLEASE REVIEW! And I'll try and update in a few days :-)**

**-Hannah**


	4. Flying and valentines pranks

MWF 4

"I'm not getting up!" Sirius yelled from underneath his covers.

"Padfoot we're going to be late for quidditch practise!" James was unsuccessfully trying to yank the covers from him, getting kicked in the face in the process.

"You know no-ones going to be there except for us, they're all going to be in Hogsmeade for valentines day! You know, where WE should be?"

"Nothings more important than quidditch Sirius, not even Clara Richards."

"Well that's arguable" Sirius laughed with a wink, finally dragging himself from the depths of his bed and throwing on his quidditch uniform. "You wouldn't know about that anyway Prongs, you've been too busy chasing our good friend Lily"

"Shut up! I do not!" James blushed and turned away in a huff.

"Oh please, don't try that with me, you've asked her out about a million times since first year!"

"Whatever, lets just go."

Sirius being Sirius, he didn't shut up the entire way down, which resulted in him getting a punch in the face and he had to walk the rest of the way to the Quidditch pitch with a black eye/

"Ok, so we do three laps of the pitch to warm up, then get into drills,and then work on your beating, I almost got whacked in the head by Malfoy last time."

"I don't need help, I'm clearly the most valuable asset to the team!" He grinned "Anyway that was just to keep you on your toes"

"Oh, great thanks, as long as you know that if it happens again the Bludgers not the only thing that's getting whacked with a stick" Leaving both of them in fits of laughter.

They grabbed their brooms and walked out into the fresh winter air, making them shiver terribly.

"God, they'll be sending us out naked next! What's wrong with sending alpacas up there instead of poor us"

"So, so many things Padfoot. Come on, they'll be no point in going up if we don't go now"

"In that case I need the loo,"

"Hilarious, now get up there before I throw you there myself."

* * *

"I swear I left it up there Lils!" Kara pleaded.

"Well why would you have left your charms book in the Quidditch stands?" Lily was not convinced by Kara's story, but school emergencies (sort of) was a good excuse to get out of prefect duty with Regulus Black.

"I told you, I had charms before the last Quidditch match and left my book in the stands because I went to congratulate Sirius!"

"Alright then, but this better not be for nothing!"

Really, Kara had purposely left her book there because she knew she would meet James and Sirius to hang out with, and she wanted to show Lily they where actually all right.

"So then where's this book?" Lily moaned as they searched the third stand as Kara waited for Sirius and James to come out.

"Probably still in bed the lazy idiots!" Kara muttered under her breath as she watched the Gryfindoor entrance.

"Your charms book is still in bed?"

"No, I said 'probably in another stand, now keep looking you lazy idiot'"

"Riiiight, so to the next stand?"

"Yup, and and almost half certain it's there this time!"

"Hurray, what a great Saturday this is going to be, not" Lilly groaned.

When they reached the bottom James and Sirius had come onto the pitch.

"Why is James trying to throw Sirius into the air?" Kara asked laughing.

"Because he's an idiot and that's the kind of stupid thing he would do! Why don't you just borrow my charms book?"

"Don't be boring, lets go over there!" Kara dragged Lily over to James and Sirius just as James was shouting at Sirius.

"IF YOU DON'T GET IN THE AIR RIGHT NOW THAT BROOM IS GOING, of hey Kara! Ummm, Lilly."

"I see Sirius is being a pain again" Kara laughed as she pulled him off the floor "Quidditch practise then?"

"No we're hunting elephants, what do you think?" Sirius joked as he got on his broomstick "Want a ride Shaw?"

"Obviously!" Kara leapt on the broom and they where away as Kara screamed in delight. Because Kara has the flying skills of a unicorn she leapt at any chance to go flying.

"Want a ride to Evans?" James suggested rather too hopefully.

"I'd rather die thanks Potter." Lily sat down in a huff on a nearby bench.

"You never where one for fun where you, probably you having an out of body experience yesterday?" James teased as he got on his broom. "Of course, your probably to scared to anyway!"

"Excuse me? I am not scared!" Lily got up and got on the broom "Go on then!"

With a smirk James pushed of the floor and they where in the air, Overcome with fear without realising she grabbed james' waist and heald on for her life.

"Thought you hated my guts?" James joked and did a somersault.

"Potter if you kill me I'm coming back as a ghost and killing you!" It was meant in a threatening way but came out as more of a joke.

"Ok potter, fun's over, put me down!"

"But we're having so much fun! Watch this," He shouted over his shoulder.

They glided straight over the walls of the quidditch pitch and over to the lake where they flew over the gleaming water as their feet brushed the top of, spraying it in their faces.

"I can accuse you of kidnap you know!" Lily shouted as they passsed the willow tree.

"Nah, your having way too much fun for that" He laughed and did another somersault and landed on a bank where they got off and lay down in the reeds.

"If you ever do that to me again James I'll use the cruciatus curse on you," She giggled, but turned over to find James lying there in shock. "What?"

"You called me James!" He gasped.

"Oh yeah hilarious, I'm not allowed to call you by your own name?"

"No, I'm just used to hearing 'Potter!' in a disgusted tone" they fell about laughing and realised Sirius and Kara will be looking for them.

"Want a ride back?"

"I'd like to be alive for graduation thanks" Lily joked, so they walked back up to the pitch from the lake.

"So why have you hated since you first set eyes on me Lils?"

"Well you can't really blame me seeings as you've spent the last five years trying to show me up!"

"Not exactly, most of that was Sirius, and I just did it to get your attention, you know."

"Well the carrot peelings certainly worked! Anway, I don't see why you where so desperate anyway, I thought I was a know it all"

"And that's why I like you so much! Remember on the first day on the platform? As soon as I saw you standing there I knew I was going to marry you."

"Knew?"

"Ok maybe not knew, but certainly hoped"

At that moment they where ambushed by Kara and Sirius.

"So, what happened?" Kara questioned eagerly.

"What do you mean? We just went flying!" Defender Lily and she, Kara, James, and Sirius walked back up.

"Yeah course. Anyway I found my book and we've got homework to do Lils."

"Oh, let's not care about homework!" Everyone gasped in shock.

"You, Lily Evans, teachers pet, example prefect, straight O student, wants to skip homework! For us! I'm honoured." Sirius bowed jokingly and hooked his hand through Lily's elbow and lead her down the path. "I think this calls for a plan Prongs, what do you think?"

"Obviously! Think of it as an initiation to our friendship."

"Oh so I need to bee initiated, I can drop out you know!"

"Ok, but lets still pull a prank on someone."

"Where's Remus and Peter?" Kara looked around in case they where watching from the stands.

"Well Remus has bagged a date with Nymphadora Tonks, you know one with metamorphmagus powers, through some miracle and they went to Hogsmeade, and Peters nan took him out for the day. So call yourselves the replacement back ups!"

"Sirius, shut up, they're our mated now replacements, ignore him he's, well Sirius." And they all started laughing again.

"So what shall we do?"

"It's got to be something big, and good, something to remember as out first step to rebelising Miss Evans here"

"What about something love related in favour of James and Lily?" Sirius joked, getting slapped both James and Lily.

"Still we could do something at the valentines feast, I know what about stink bomb chocolates?"

"No we did that last year, we should do exploding love letters!"

"Padfoot we did that first year, come on!" James and Sirius went into deep thinking mode.

"God, I haven't ever seen you concentrate on something before! It's a miracle!" Kara laughed.

"I've got it!" Sirius yelled.

* * *

"Are you sure this is going to work?" Lily asked nervously "I didn't even want to do this, and if I get into trouble I'm blaming you"

"When do any of out pranks ever go wrong?" James laughed "OK lets forget I said that and get into position!"

They had to sit at the end of the Gryfindoor table and cast the charm and then Sirius and Kara would do the rest. So when the feast began they did it.

From the Slytherin all the roses on the table hovered into the air, and started shouting insults at them whilst jabbing them in the backs. Some of them tried to run away, but the roses just followed them out of the room.

"Dumbledore! Did you see what they did? It was clearly those stupid Marauders again!" Regulus Black yelled after the roses fell to the floor.

"I'm sorry Regulus, I must have missed it" Dumbledore said with a chuckle. He was wise to the marauders tricks and quite enjoyed them.

As soon ad their guard was down Sirius and Kara came in smilling with Sasha looking suspiceous behind them.

"All right Lily, what's going on?" Sasha sat opposite her just as the first shriek came from the Slytherin table and Sirius and Kara burst out laughing. All over the Slytherin table Chocolates everywhere were exploding and surrounding them in a massive pink cloud and they dissapeared by the time it had gone.

"What on earth was that?" Sasha asked suspiciously.

"Oh don't worry Lily made sure they're somewhere near here, probably only in the Slytherin room." Sirius moaned "I wanted to send them to Australia but apparently that's 'pushing it'"

A massive cheer followed their disappearances, but they where shortly back in the hall and Sirius Snape came right up to them.

"All right Snivules?" James taunted.

"No I'm not all right Potter, I wish you and your stupid antics would stop, and Lily I can't believe your involved in this" Snape sneered and flounced off.

"How could you have been friends with that weirdo Lilypop?" Severus scowled

"Ok, first, Lilypop?"

"You've got to have a nickname, and yours is Lilypop!"

"Great, and secondly he's not a looser, he just has anger issues."

"Don't stick up for the freak me and Padfoot sore how badly he treated you, why do you think we hate him?"

"Just leave him alone, all right!" Lily argued and walked out.

"Where's she gone?" James looked as she went.

"Probably the Gryfindoor balcony" Kara explained "That's were she goes when she's upset."


	5. Heart to Hearts and Ugly Trolls

MWF 5

Lily was staring out over the Hogwarts grounds and the sun set in the distance behind the great lake reflecting off the water like a mirror. The grounds where framed by mountains and topped with fluffy white clouds and a bright blue sky.

She always went up there when she was sad because the view was comforting and she felt as if she could fly out into the distance, leave all of here worries behind, and be absorbed by the landscape.

"Lily?" James walked out onto the balcony and stood beside her. "What's wrong?"

"Nothings, I'm fine" she murmured.

"Lils, I know something is wrong, was is something Sirius said?" He joked, but got a glare. "Ok, something I said?"

"No, it's nothing really!" Lily turned her back on him and wiped the tear that fell down her cheek.

It wasn't just Sirius that was bothering her, but all the memories that came with him. All of the days spent lazing around the river at home with him and Petunia (Lily always called her Tuny), the picnics they went of with her family, and when Severus would come round to her house and her dad would always act as though they where royalty and bow down to them and make them sandwiches while she giggled non stop. Her dad. Just the thought sent on another wave of tears that she couldn't hide.

"Oh Lils, come here!" James took her by the hand and pulled her into a hug were they just stood as lily cried silently into his shoulder. "I promise I'll never even whisper a word about Snape if it hurts you, yeah?"

"But it's not just Snape! I don't really care about him after how he's treated me since we came here, it's loosing the life I had before I came here, before the magic, I just wish I wasn't even a wizard!" She wept and knelt on the floor with her head on her knees. James sat down next to her and wrapped his arm around her to comfort her.

"Don't say that Lils, if you'd never had become a wizard, you'd never had met me, and you know I can't deny how much you mean to me"

"Yeah, and those wizards wouldn't have killed my father just because he was a muggle" Lily scorned.

"They what?" James didn't know just about Lily, and she kept her heart well away from her sleeve and wrapped up in her chest. He just knew the kind, beautiful, smart, yet shy girl he sore on the outside.

"I was 10, and I'd just got my letter from Hogwarts, and everyone was so happy, until it happened. We were walking back from the restaurant were we'd celebrated my acceptance, and Dad was the same as normal, making magic jokes, and saying he always knew I was weird." This sent more tears running down her face. "Then when we got to the house the windows were smashed and on the door there was a note that looked like it was written in blood saying '_Mudblood' _and dad just cursed the vandals and went marching into the house – and that was the last time I saw him. We walked into the house to find him dead on the living room floor and the back door wide open." Lily couldn't speak at all after that revelation and just rested her head on James' shoulder while they stared out at the view until James broke the silence.

"Your stronger then I thought, Lily, now come on, the others will be wondering were we are, and anyway you don't want to miss rest of the valentines feast!"

"Is it really still valentines day? And I thought the nightmare was nearly over" She forced a laugh to show she was fine and they walked down to the dining hall in silence.

* * *

"Lily, were on earth did you go?" Sasha demanded to know when they sat down with the others who where now joined by Remus and Peter.

"Just catching up on studying, and James helped me that's all" Lily lied with a false smile.

"Right." Kara clearly didn't believe her, but she had more important stuff to talk about. "So Lils, guess whose got a girlfriend?" She asked excitedly.

"Oh Kara I'm so proud of you, when did you come out?" And everyone burst into laughter.

"Yeah hilarious, but nowhere near. Remus!" At this comment Sasha looked hurt and just turned away.

"No way!" She gasped, completely forgetting what had just happened "I mean, I'm not one to gossip, but, tell me everything!"

"Nothing! I keep telling this lot, we just went to Madam Pudifoots then walked round for a bit, nothing special" Remus said defensively.

"Oh my God Moony, what have you become! Madam Pudifoots! That's a soppy love place I can't believe you went there, you're a disgrace to the Marauder values!" Sirius said offended by Remus' actions.

"What, the Marauder values that say you must go out with someone once, then completely forget about them and move on?" Sasha laughed.

"I can't help it that there's only one of me to go around, they need to share me seeings as I am clearly the most gorgeous person in the school" Sirius bragged as he flicked his hair and pouted in a model like fashion sending everyone into fits of laughter again. "What?"

"Nothing, just I can't believe I'm best mates with someone so vain!" Kara gasped through her uncontrollable laughter.

"Yeah, well we all know your all just using me for the popularity!" Sirius pointed out, but it just got ignored.

"Anyway, me Lily and Kara have got homework to do for transfiguration, and I need someone to copy off soon!" Sasha exclaimed and began bustling the other two out the room. "Haven't you as well?" She asked the Marauders.

"We already great and transfiguration, you could call us professionals!" Sirius bragged, and got an elbow in the ribs from an anxious looking Remus.

"What he means is I've already done it, and he'll probably just steal it and his name on it" Remus blurted out trying to change the subject in case his secret was revealed.

"That does sound like Sirius" Sasha laughed, and they where gone.

* * *

"Good excuse for coming back up here Sasha, if I here another thing about l-o-v-e I'm going to throw up" Lily complained as she flopped down on her bed.

"It wasn't an excuse, I really need to copy your six inches on Animagus'" She explained as she got out a quill, ink, and crumpled parchment from the bottom of her bag.

"Oh great, Lily moaned as she fished out her perfect report. Just at that moment Shanice and Violet their room-mates strode in and stood menacingly about Lily.

"What do you want?" Lily said trying to sound big.

"I wanna know what this set up is with you and James!" Shanice demanded.

"What set up?" She asked confused.

"Don't act thick, I can see what's going on, and I want it to stop!" She growled.

"But..." Lily continued.

"Shut it Evans. I don't wanna hear you pompous excuses, I just want you to know that James is mine, and I'm not having a loser like you stopping me!"

"God Shanice, what makes you think he'll like an ugly troll like you?" Kara stated. "I'm sure not even Peter would give YOU the time of day!"

"Watch it Shaw," Violet grunted, and they waltzed out of the room (after Shanice checked her self in the mirror and applied even more make-up.

"What on earth was that about?" Lily stammered.

"Ugh, just ignore them, their such big losers!" Kara snorted, and flicked through Sasha's magazine "Oh My God! Alex Polmer's new shoes so do not go with that blue dress!" She exclaimed, and with an 'I told you so' nod from Sasha to Lily she set to copying out her homework from Lily.

* * *

"Is it just me, or is Shanice Caster giving Prongs weird looks from over there?" Peter asked worriedly.

"You know Wormy, I was just thinking that!" Sirius cried out "God I feel sorry for you, Prongs. Why does she go for that clown look with all that lipstick?"

"I have no idea, but it's pretty scary isn't it" Remus replied in a slightly disturbed tone.

"Guys just shut up will you? Maybe if I just ignore her she'll just go away" James asked, knowing this wouldn't work at all.

"Is she blind or something, Prongs is clearly planning on marrying my little Lilypop, and another thing, he actually has standards!" Sirius remarked.

"Yeah, not even I would go out with her , and I'm practically desperate!" Peter joked, then went quiet because he had just taken the mickey out of himself.

"Yeah, let alone Prongs!"

"I wonder what he's gonna do with her chasing him?"

"I am sat right here you know! God just shut up will you! I'm going to speak to Lily, Sasha and Kara, you know for some smart company?" James cried out and left the table.

"You know, I might go with him," Remus quickly added and ran after him.

"Hey James" Shanice called after him, getting no reply.

When he and Remus got to the Gryfindoor common room he marched up the girls staircase, whilst Remus stood at the bottom waiting for James to realise his stupidity.

"Argh!" He heard James cry as the stairs turned into a slide and he came crashing down and landed in a heap with Remus at the bottom. "Why didn't you warn me!" He yelled at Remus.

"I thought it would be funny, and it was!" He chuckled, and got slapped in the face by James as he tried heaving himself up.

Before they could get up Lily, Kara, and Sasha came running down the stairs and burst out laughing as soon as they saw them.

"Yeah, yeah, hilarious, now get us up!" James shouted. Lily heaved him up, then remembered what Shanice had said, let go of his hand (Making him fall over all over again) and ran back up the stairs.

"What's up with her?" He questioned dizzily as he got pulled up for the second time by Sasha.

"Tell you later" She replied as they sat down on their couch by the fireplace.

**Authors Note:**

**Whoops, forgot this last time! Sorry it took me a year to upload again, I got into other books like the Hunger games (Oh My God aren't they great!?) Anyway, come on people, review! How will I know whether or not it's rubbish or not. Go on, it'll only take a second. I'll refuse to post another chapter till there's at least 5 reviews :-)**

**Anyway, got another chapter to write seeing as I'm a year behind, bye :-)**

**P.S- You know just saying bye sound really lame, I'll have to think of something better, any ideas?**


	6. Wagers and Muggle Attacks

"Shanice did what?" James gasped in shock.

"I know, I hate her more than I already do at the moment, and I didn't think that was possible!" Remus joked.

"Well I think she's pathetic, and we should all gang together and beat her up!" Kara suggested enthusiastically, but just got a lot of weird looks from the others. "Ok, maybe not." She murmured.

"No, we just need to prove to her that James likes Lily a lot more!" Remus said.

"And how on earth are we going to do that?" James piped up "I mean I right out said it to her face last year, and she's still chasing me, it's horrible!"

"Well now you know how Lily felt" Sasha pointed out, and that shut him up, so James just pick up his books and left to try and get to Lily himself.

"Ok, I have an idea," Kara said in the silence "All we have to do is get James and Lily together!"

"Yeah, like that's going to work, I mean, Prongs has been trying to do that for five years and it hasn't worked!" Remus pointed out, and at that point Peter walked through the door.

"Ok, what's going on, James just pulled Sirius away mentioning something about flying?" Peter asked suspiciously.

"How are we supposed to know? Probably boring quidditch practise anyway. What we're doing is trying to get James and Lily together" Remus explained.

"And we're telling him that it's not going to work because James has been doing it completely wrong!" Sasha argued.

"Well Lily didn't exactly make it easy! You know, if she wasn't so high maintenance he probably would have got somewhere!" Remus argued back.

"Well, we'll see whose right then, because I have an idea. Whoever can get James and Lily together first is right, and the loosing team will have to do a forfeit, which will obviously be you and Peter, Remus" Kara taunted.

"Sure, so the looser has to run down from the common room to the grounds, and jump into the lake"

"Oh no, I'm trembling in my boots!" Kara remarked sarcastically.

"Naked"

"Now it's getting better. But we get to gather a crowd before hand, you know, to make it more fun for me to watch."

"What makes you think your going to win Lupin?"

"I don't think I know"

"So it's a bet?"

"It's a bet!"

* * *

Lily was lying on her bed with her face buried in her pillow when she heard muffled shouting from below, so being the nosy person she was she stuck her head out the window to see James and Sirius fighting with a broomstick below her, so she pulled her head back in quickly and listened to their argument.

"No Prongs, that's never going to work!"

"It will, I promise, now get on the stupid broomstick or ... but worse this time"

"Fine, but I bet the magic Dumbledore's got on this place … and we'll end up dead or in detention"

"I don't care she was so upset … now come on!"

And that's where it ended so Lily leapt back on her bed, grabbed Sasha's magazine and stared and a disastrous picture of Alexis Polmer in a blue dress and shoes that really did now match them.

"_Oh wow Sasha was right!" _She thought to herself, and just as she was getting into the article about her new film a dark silhouette of James Potter came crashing through the window and ended up in a heap on the floor, and got up just quick enough to muffle Lily's screams.

"Shhhh! It's just me, James!" he whispered as Lily looked around franticly.

"God Potter, you'll be the death of me!" She hissed and he made himself comfortable on her bed,forcing her to move to Kara's . "Don't make yourself comfortable there because you're going to get caught sooner or later!"

"I'd prefer late, that means I get more time to talk to you about Shanice"

"Shanice? What is there to talk about Shanice?" Lily replied blankly in an unconvincing tone.

"Lils, why didn't you tell me?" James knelt down in front of her and took her hand.

"Why should I even have cared" She snuffled and turned away "It's not even as if I like you"

This was like a stab in the heart for James, but instead of show it he just turned her head back towards him and whispered.

"Because I like you, and sadly for you it's sticking like that whether you want me to or not."

"So everything's exactly the same?" She said quietly with a faint smile.

"Nah, cause this time I'm sure you want me to" He laughed, and for the first time Lily laughed with him lightly pushing him away.

"Keep dreaming Potter!"

"Please don't do that Lils" James pleaded and he went serious for a second.

"Don't do what?"

"Go back to calling me Potter" he explained with a stern look on his face. "That's what you called me when you hated me."

"Ok, I hereby promise never to call you Potter again" Lily swore with her hand on her heart. James couldn't help himself then, Lily was just sat there with her dazzling green eyes and gorgeous smile, he just leaned over and kissed her, just for a second before he pulled away scarlet with blushing.

"James..." Lily started.

"No, sorry, I've ruined it now. I'll just leave." He ran up to the window and yelled down to Sirius, who then shouted something about enslavement and abuse. "I understand if you never want to speak to me again Lils, I've wrecked it again." and before Lily could reply he was leaping on the back of Sirius' broom and flew away into the night.

Deciding not to let James Potter get to her again Lily threw on her flannel Pyjamas, pulled on her bunny slippers, and settled down in bed with her favourite book – little woman.

Just as she got comfortable Kara and Sasha came crashing through the doorway with strangely determined looks on their faces.

"Uhh, Lils, hey! How are you? Spoken to James lately?" Sasha babbled plonking herself down next Lily.

"No? Is everything all right Sash?" Lily slowly edged away from her deranged friend and giving her a concerned look.

"No, no everything's fine, just thinking we should go and meet up with James now, he's such a great person isn't he" Kara smiled oddly, trying to rush Lily into her jeans and a sweater.

"Get off you nutter!" Lily cried as she shoved Kara into Sasha and sat in protest on her bed refusing to budge. "What's with the sudden interest anyway?"

Kara and Sasha glanced at each other, pushing the other one to come up with a good excuse.

"What on earth would make you think we didn't in the first place?"

"Uh, maybe the fake yawning, or tutting every time I even try to start ranting about what an idiot James Potter is? Or maybe the annoyed looks every time I try telling you how cocky he is when ruffles his hair, or does that stupid marauder grin?" but she just got fake offended looks from her friend, so seeing she was clearly getting nowhere Lily just rolled over, switched off the light, and pretended to be asleep until Kara and Sasha had given up and moped off to their own beds.

* * *

"Oh God have you read the daily profit?" James exclaimed slamming down the newspaper he was reading on the table.

"No, what's happened now." Remus leaned over cautiously scanning the front page which showed a burnt down house with smoke pouring out of the roof, flowers lining the pavement.

"Not again!" He gasped, reading the rest of the article which read _'VOLDERMORT STRIKES AGAIN'_.

"How could they do that? It's sick. We really need to do something about this" James burst out.

"Yeah and what are we going to do to the greatest dark wizard of all time?" Remus retorted "Transfigure them into mugs?"

"Hilarious Moony. No, what I was thinking was we should become Aurors, you know? Really make a difference, we can't just let them murder innocent muggles!" James declared passionately, thinking of how Lily's father was murdered by them.

"I think you should concentrate more on the present, maybe start with Lily?" This was Remus' first plan of getting the two together, just by reminding James of how much he always wanted Lily. "I'm pretty sure you where meant to be together"

"Where on earth has this come from, I thought you where sick of hearing about Lily Evans?" James stared at his mate confused.

"Yeah Moony, you're starting to sound like Sasha being all interested in luuurrrve!" Sirius taunted, but shut up pretty quickly after Sasha hit him in the head his her charms book. "Oww! Why hit me with that deadly weapon!"

"You've got to stop being an idiot when I'm in possession of heavy objects!" Sasha snickered, dumping her book back in her bag "Anyway, I've got to find some use for it!"

"Yeah, and what better use can you find for an object then hitting you with it?" Peter laughed.

"Great, so I'm just going to sit here and be offended by my mates?" Sirius moaned looking helpless.

"What else are you good for?" Kara joked at her old friend.

"Well, let's not forget my dashing good looks, hilarious sense of humour, never ending knowledge, or my amazing skills on the quidditch pitch!" Sirius claimed, with a comical flick of his hairm sending everyone into hysterical laughter.

For the whole time Lily was just perched on the edge of the bench looking anxious in deep thought about James.

"Shouldn't we be getting to care of magical creatures?" She asked quietly.

"Yeah, suppose so. Just a shame we have to have it with the Slytherins!" Kara groaned as the prised themselves from the bench and shuffled down to the outskirts of the forbidden forest to find Hagrid stood there looking anxious.

"Hagrid? Why are you teaching us today?" Remus questoined, looking around in case they'd gone to the wrong place.

"You're usual professor is otherwise engaged at the moment, so you have me," Hagrid explained as he tried to lure something towards him with a dead rabbit.

"Umm, Hagrid, what are you doing?" Kara questioned anxiously, they where all used to just studying finger eating shrews, not things that are big enough to eat rabbits.

The rest of the class had now showed up and where looking worried about what Hagrid was going to do as well.

"This, Kara, is a very rare Acromantula, a gigantic spider breed from Norway," Hagrid explained, and as soon as he did the whole class took a step back.

"Yeah right, Hagrid, you're not even a real teacher, like you would be stupid enough to get an Acromantula" Regulus remarked, but still looked pretty worried.

"Shut it Regulus" Sirius warned. He and the Marauders where good friends with Hagrid, and didn't let anyone take the mickey out of him.

"Ohh, I'm so scared, what are you going to do? Get one of your boyfriends on me?" Gaining a laugh from all of the Slytherins.

"If you mean us then yes" James stepped infront of Sirius and got out his wand.

"Now, now you three, calm it down and come and see Aragog" Hagrid cut off James as he was about to hex Regulus.

"You named it?" Remus asked confused.

"He's a friendly spider, ah here he is!" From the depths of the forest a huge hairy figure emerged and snapped the dead rabbit from Hagrid's hand. "Come and show yourself Aragog!"

At the sight of the huge spider a lot of the class backed off quickly leaving the marauders and Lily stood there confused.

"Ah, you five! Come and say hello to Aragog!" Hagrid was trying so hard they forced themselves towards the looming figure.

"Oh God we're gonna be killed!" Lily murmured to herself. As they got closer to Aragog he raised his head and spoke.

"Ah, Hagrid, you've brought me some fresh meat!"

"No Aragog, these are students, we're teaching them about Acromantulas" Hagrid was starting to look worried by his comment.

"Them I'll show them first hand how dangerous we are!" And with that Aragog launched himself towards Lily, throwing her to the floor as Hagrid shouted at him to get off her.

"Lily!" James yelled, running to her.

"James Potter, don't go near him!" Hagrid ordered, but James just brushed his orders away, desperate not to loose Lily, no matter whether he hated her or not.

James ripped his wand from his pocket and shouted a hex at the spider throwing it away from Lily who was out cold on the floor with blood pouring from her head, but James threw himself next to her and tried to wake her up.

"Lily, come on! Please!" He cried, picking her up in his arms and running out of the forest and to Hagrid's hut closely followed by the marauders who had finished scaring Aragog back into the forest, and James carefully put Lily onto a tattered couch whilst Sirius and Remus searched the cupboards for bandages and water, and Peter ran to the infirmary to get the new healer madam Pomphrey. During this Hagrid just stood there confused.

"He's a good spider, Aragog would never do that" He spoke to himself in shock.

James spoke a healing spell and the wound on Lily's head sealed itself leaving a bright red scar on her pure, flawless skin, and her bright red hair sticky with blood,and Remus moved in to wrap it in a bandage. They where used to dealing with serious wounds because of all the times when Remus would lash out at them as a werewolf.

While they left Lily to recover, and waited for madam Pomphrey to come and look her over James knelt next to Lily's still body and traced his fingers over the bruises covering her arms and neck, wishing it was him lying there not her.


	7. Hospital Beds and Comb Murder

James never left Lily's side in the infirmary for the five days she was either out cold, or dazed and confused and kept calling him Bert whilst telling him he'd better watch out for the massive butterfly that lived under her bed. When she finally woke up as herself she found James sat on the chair next to her fast asleep, clutching her hand. I massive bouquet of Lilies was on her bedside table which filled the air with their sweet smell, but there was no label on them.

"James?" She whispered, still feeling quite queezy, and when she tried to raise her head a stabbing pain ran through her. James slowly woke up, rubbed his eyes, and as soon as he remembered who he was, and where he was he sat bolt upright.

"Lily, oh God are you all right?" James babbled, scanning her, making sure she hadn't gotten worse since he last saw her two minutes ago.

"I'm fine, I just have no memory after breakfast. How long have you been there?"

"Oh only a few minutes" He lied "I thought I'd come and check up on you, but I must have fallen asleep!"

"Ok, and who are the Lilies from?" James had ordered the biggest, most expensive bunch of Lilies he could find for Lily, but still didn't want her to know it was from him in case she thought he was showing off how rich he was when Lily didn't have her father to support her.

"Oh, ur, Kara and Sasha brought them up yesterday, they're great aren't they?" James blurted out the first legitimate answer that came into his head.

"They're gorgeous! I love them, they look so expensive! Oh they're such great friends, dont you think?"

"Yeah. Great Friends" James murmured.

"Oh and why on earth am I here anyway?" The infirmary came into focus as her eyes adjusted to the bright, but as she tried to block the light his her hand the pain of the bruises smothering her arms forced them to her sides.

"Hagrid decided showing us a man eating spider would be a good idea and it attacked you" James explained.

"Oh, I vaguely remember that, and then the only thing I can remember is being carried to Hagrid's cut and someone looking after me, I know because I could slightly here their voice asking me to wake up."

"Do you remember who it was" James questioned anxiously.

"No, just the fact it must have been a man, why who was it?"

"Just Remus, I went to get Madam Pomphrey" He didn't want Lily knowing it was him that did it because he was still seriously embarrassed about kissing her. Lily knew it wasn't Remus, it was a much deeper voice, so she was confused as to why James would lie, but she couldn't figure out why because the last week was very hazy to her.

"Ah, Miss Evans, you're finally yourself again!" Madam Pomphrey marched over. "Your lucky mister Potter here sav..." But she was cut off by James shaking his head at her, so she wouldn't tell Lily it was him who saved her. "I mean you're lucky Mister Potter got me or else you probably would have been killed! What a stupid thing letting a grounds-keeper be in charge of children's safety"

"Yes, I am aren't I" Lily said unsurely "James, who was it that stopped Aragog from killing me?"

"Well Hagrid ordered him off you, then Sirius sent it back into the forest afterwards" James lied, getting a confused look from Madam Pomphrey.

"That doesn't sound like Sirius at all, he's terrified of spiders!" Lily knew when James was lying, and urged him to tell her the truth, whatever it was.

"Anyway, Miss Evans, you need to take it easy over the next 3-4 days, get a lot of rest. Mr Potter you can leave now, she's in safe hands." Madam Pomphrey interrupted.

"Bu..."James started.

"No buts, you've done plenty, so off you pop so you don't miss any more lessons"

"Yes Madam Pomphrey" He muttered and slumped off.

* * *

"Oh God Prongs, when was the last time you showered!" Sirius shouted as James sat down on the bench.

"Shut up Pads, I've been worried about Lily!" James hadn't eaten for five days, apart from the odd bight of toast Madam Pomphrey force fed him, and was practically inhaling his plate of pancakes, toast, teacakes, and crumpets.

"Fine, as long as you shower for about two hours I'll let myself be seen with you" Sirius stated, but got whacked in the head by James. "Fine I'll admit I deserved that. But as long as you're ready for the quidditch match against Slytherin tomorrow I'll let you off"

"Oh God that's tomorrow?" James had completely zoned out from the real world and was only concentrating on Lily and her getting better for the past five days.

"Of course it it! How could you forget? You've been force training me from the past three weeks for it!" Sirius stared astonished at his quidditch crazed friend, and was shocked that he could forget the important game of the year.

"Anyway, let's just enjoy today" Remus butted in, clearly excited about something,

"How can we possibly enjoy today considering we have double potions, charms, defence against the dark arts, and charms?" James asked confused.

"Well, it's supposed to be a secret, but Dumbledore's given the whole school the day off because it's his birthday. We're not supposed to tell anyone, because he's going to announce it at the end of breakfast as a surprise, we were told in the prefect meeting yesterday" Remus explained.

"Great! A day of pranks me thinks" Sirius cried out, a billion possibilities rushing through his head at once.

"No way!" Sasha said firmly "We've got to spend the day doing something that wont possibly get us all expelled for once"

"And how does us letting loose a hundred parrots into the great hall, or making napkins spit at the Slytherins mean we might get expelled?" Sirius questions confused.

"I'll just forget you said that!" Sasha said "Now why don't we just spend the day doing nothing?"

"Uh, boring!" Sirius shouted "No, we should drench all of the Ravenclaw's with water bombs!"

Through all of this Remus slowly began to feel a racing pain through his back, and running through him. He'd completely forgotten that night way the full moon., and just ignored the pains and carried on laughing and joking with the rest of them.

"Good afternoon sleepy head!" Sasha and Kara chimed together to Lily that afternoon, clutching chocolates and flowers in their arms.

"Oh hey guys" Lily greeted in a daze, and hauled herself up in immense pain, flinching with the heavy weight on her weak, bruised arms.

"Oh gosh Lily, you're covered in bruises, you look terrible!" Sasha squealed, laying eyes on her friend for the first time in five days.

"You're looking well too!" Lily laughed, wearily sipping her water.

"Anyway we got you these!" Kara shoved the flowers and chocolates into Lily's arms and she winced in pain "God, sorry Lily, I'm so clumsy!"

"No, I'm fine Kara, these flowers are great, thank you so much for buying them for me, they must have been expensive!" James had forgotten to ask the two to pretend they were from her when he asked their opinion on the massive bunch he had picked out.

"Lils, we didn't buy them for you, James did" Sasha pointed out "He didn't say they where from him did he?"

"Of course not, or I wouldn't have thanked you!" Lily couldn't understand why he would have lied, and about such an expensive gift.

"He asked our opinion on about ten different flowers until we chose them and told him to leave us alone. That was probably the only time he left your side!"

"He stayed with me for five days!" Lily was bolt upright now, amazed at this new piece of information she was now hearing.

"Would you believe us if we said no?" Kara tried asking.

"Uh no. What else hasn't James told me?" Lily demanded to know.

"Well, what has he told you?" Sasha asked unsurely.

"He told me I was attacked by a man eating spider, Hagrid saved me, Sirius chased it into the forest and carried me to Hagrid's hut, and Remus healed my head wound." Lily told them, but was just faced with confused looks.

"Lily, you were attacked by Hagrid's spider, but it's James that saved you, carried you back, healed your wound, and sat by your bed five days straight to make sure you were all right" Sasha explained, hoping it would help her chances of getting Lily and James together if she knew the truth.

Lily just sat their, shocked by what she was being told. How could James lie about something like that, and why didn't she care that he had lied, was it something to do with the kiss? Then she realised something she hated. She was falling for James Potter.

* * *

"Heyya James!" Shanice jumped into the spare seat next to James in the library where he was trying to study for the time he's missed in potions.

"Uhh, hi" James gave her an odd look and carried on with his work.

"So, whatcha doin the next Hogsmeade trip?" she asked whilst draping her arm over his book.

"Ohh, shame, I'm staying in the castle to, er, catch up on missed work" James lied, trying to prise her arm off his book.

"Ugh, yes, how can you hang out with that loser Lily?" Shanice groaned, trying to catch James' eye by hovering her head an inch away from his.

"Don't call her a loser all right!" This was an unexpected outburst, but Shanice just laughed about flicked her hair off her shoulder.

"Ohh, touchy!" She giggled "So, me, you, Saturday, three broomsticks?"

"No way!" James shoved her off the table.

"Playing hard to get are you?" Shanice giggled, running her finger over his shoulder. "As long as you know I wont wait forever!"

"Will you go away!" James shouted shoving her harshly out of the way and storming out of the library whilst Shanice sat in shock on the floor and everyone else in the library sat staring confused at what had just happened.

* * *

"James! When we said steer clear of Shanice we didn't mean shove her onto the floor then run off!" Sirius cornered James as soon as he met up with the marauders, Sasha, and Kara on the bank by the lake.

"Waw news travels fast here!"

"Never mind about that! We have a reputation to keep up, you can't just go round shoving girls around!" This kind of thing was the only thing Sirius really concentrated on, his reputation, and the gossip chain.

"God Sirius, the girl was smothering me, anyway, you pushed Kara out the tree that once!" He argued in his defence.

"I was seven, and she touched my hair!" Sirius shook at the thought and sat down to get out his mirror and comb his hair.

"Well I think it's hilarious" Kara butted in from her shade under a willow tree. "She had it coming, and I generally don't like her, so what better excuse!"

"Hilarious!" Sirius said sarcastically, throwing grass right into Kara's hair.

"Oh right Black, that's pushing it!" Kara leapt at his, yanked the comb from his hand and threw it into the lake.

"OSMOND!" He screamed splashing through the water trying to find his comb "YOU'VE KILLED HIM! You crossed a line there Shaw" Sirius blubbed in a seriously hurt voice.

"You called your comb Osmond?" Sasha questioned, trying to refrain herself from bursting out laughing.

"It's Sirius' lucky comb Osmond, named after his favourite quidditch player, the beater Osmond Merrywinkle. I bought it for him in first year because the handle looked like a beaters bat and it was his favourite colour" James explained.

"Yeah, and we all know how obsessed black is with his hair, think of how terrible he'll look without his comb!" Kara taunted.

"Nice try Kara, but Sirius actually has a professional set of combs for different weathers, styles, and lengths." Remus shuddered at the long hours he spent while Sirius talked him through each individual comb, it's name, and purpose before another sharp pain burnt down his spine, and as the sun set behind the glistening lake the faint outline of the full moon could be seen through the deep magenta clouds. That's when he remembered.

"Uh guys?" Remus murmured, nudging the Marauders and nodding at the moon.

"Oh God Moony!" Sirius' smile fell and a look of panic and shock replaced it.

"Um, guys we've got to go!" James babbled as he helped hauled Remus off the ground who was starting to twitch, and his pupils dilated to the size of grapes.

"Oh My God Remus, what's happening to you!" Sasha screamed as Remus growled at her.

"He's fine, seriously!" Peter insisted as Sirius and James where running with Remus towards the Whomping Willow.

What on earth just happened?" Kara whispered when they were out of site.

"I have no idea, let's go find out!" Sasha was up off the ground and running to the Whomping Willow, dragging Kara closely behind her.

**Authors Note:**

**Now, I know I'm not involving Peter much at all. But I'm not going to lie, I absolutely hate him, it's just a shame he's essential to the entire story :-( He's just a slimy git and I really want to kill him off, but then Voldermort would never be killed and I hate him even more :-P , and I'll try to update by midnight tomorrow. Oh, and I've come up with a sign out phrase in dedication to the marauders themselves, so from me,**

**Mischief managed :-) **


	8. Illegal Animagus' and Revealed Secrets

James nestled next to Remus in his stag Animagus as he sat hunched up with his hands clutching his head. Sirius patted in dragging a satchel full of medicine which Remus seized, ripped open, and drank the entire contents of the bottle. Peter scuttled up and squeaked, nodding towards the door and the three of them left the room where Remus was to transform to give him some peace. It's always hard leaving a friend in pain, but being able to hear them screaming from next door is heart wrenching. James winced, and Sirius rubbed his hairy head against him sympathetically.

Then, howling replaced the screams, and a werewolf went tearing past the doorway, so the stag, wolf, and rat took after him, and went to run out of the shack to what they thought would be their next adventure.

* * *

Kara and Sasha appeared at the base of the Whomping Willow just as Harry, Sirius, Peter, and Remus disappeared into the base. The tree was lifeless and still, the branches lying limply on the ground.

"Is it sleeping?" Kara prodded the branch and flinching in case it came back into life.

"Trees don't sleep you idiot, those stupid marauders probably just did something stupid to it! Now come on, we'll loose them!" Sasha charged towards the base of the tree, and through the gap near the base.

It was a dark, damp passageway, with soil crumpling in on it as they ran through it. Shrieks echoed through the walls, and pierced their ears.

"What on earth is going on?" Sasha whispered in alarm, thinking about turning back.

"You know Sirius, they probably saw us coming and tried to freak us out in case we found their base" Kara explained, shoving her on down the passage.

Through the light at the end of the tunnel they noticed they where no longer underground, but in a house.

"The Shrieking Shack!" Kara exclaimed, looking out of a nearby window down at Hogsmeade from a point of view she'd never seem before.

"Oh God, what are the Marauders messing about at!" Sasha said with concern, but before Kara could come up with an idea a whimpering came from the next room, so the two peered around the door frame to find a wolf sat in the corner, and James stood in the middle of the room, wand in hand. Then before their eyes he turned into a majestic stag, stood tall in the middle of the room.

"Illegal animeguses!" Kara stated almost too loudly, but they both shot back round the door before the others could see her.

"Sirius was clearly the wolf, have you ever seen a wolf with such good hair?" Kara joked "But where are Remus and Peter?" Another scream came from the room across the hall and the stag and the wolf shot out of the room, not noticing Kara or Sasha, and into the end room.

While their guard was down a rat also came shooting from the room, and stopped dead in front of Sasha and Kara, shaking it's head vigorously, a satchel gripped in it's jaw.

"Peter!" Kara shouted, but couldn't be heard over the screams coming from the next room. Looking worried and panicked the rat charged into the room to warm the other three, but James and Sirius just thought he meant to leave for Remus' peace.

Kara and Sasha ran into the little room opposite the one where they had just seen James and Sirius and hid in a battered wardrobe in the corner.

"What on earth's going on?" Kara whispered to Sasha, who was squashed in next to her.

"Shh!" She warned and gestured toward the doorway where the stag could be seen closing the door, a pained look on his face. When the coast was clear they snook out the room and started to creep down the hallway when howling replaced the pained screams, and a viceous werewolf burst out of the room, eyes locked on the two girls, and it ran after them, hunting them down.

"Run!" Sasha yelled, and they flew down the stairs, the werewolf closely following.

As James, Sirius, and Peter ran out of the door they came face to face with their worst nightmares. Sasha and Kara were stood in shock on the staircase as Remus rampaged towards them, and they charged out the door just before Remus lashed out at them.

Without any thought the Marauders followed, trying to get Remus' attention, but he was only concentrating on Sasha and Kara. James knew he could have no effect on Remus as a stag, so as he ran he changed back into his human form and charged onwards, his wand clutched in his hand.

"Incarcerous!" He bellowed, ropes flying from his wand that wrapped themselves around Remus and he fell to the ground, howling and rolling about helplessly.

Kara and Sasha fell to the floor out of breath, and the wolf fell next to them, licking their faces.

"Get off Sirius, I know it's you!" Kara panted, wearily pushing the dog off her, and it turned into the worried looking Sirius Black lying flat on his back out of breath from the running.

"Well I'm getting de ja vu!" Sasha joked, but then went serious again "Oh, and would you mind telling us what the hell just happened?!"

"Would you believe us if we told you we where trying on our Halloween costumes?" Sirius asked unconvincingly.

"Well no offence to Peter, but I don't think he would fit in a rat costume!" Kara stated sarcastically after catching her breath. "Now can we please leave this stupid werewolf before it eats us all and go find Remus?"

"Uhh, sure, but he's probably gone back to the castle by now, too scared" Sirius lied.

"Yeah, that sounds like Remus!" Sasha laughed, and they ran away from the slowly escaping werewolf as quick as possible and flopped down in the common room.

* * *

"But Miss Pomphrey I assure you I'm fine!" Lily insisted "You have to let me go and see J-, I mean the quidditch match!"

"Lily Evans you were attacked by a spider twice the size of yourself and you want to leave just seven days later?" Madam Pomphrey could clearly see Lily wanted to go and see James, she wasn't blind, so she let Lily off with a note about her medication and Lily tore out of the hospital wing to go and see James before the quidditch match she knew was scheduled against Slytherin that Saturday, but she thought it was best if she got changed out of her hospital robes first.

At first she ran through the common room without even noticing who was in there, but after she'd washed her face and thrown on jeans and a jumper, and was running through the common room for a second time she noticed James, Sirius, Kara, and Sasha all completely out cold on the couches surrounding the fireplace.

"Uh guys!" She called over to them.

"Mom, five more minutes!" Sirius shouted, rolling over off the couch and landing flat on his face. "Ow, God, what happened!" But after he remembered what was happening he looked directly and Lily and his face lit up.

"Lilypop!" He yelled, throwing himself at Lily, but retreated quickly when she winced in pain "God Lils what's wrong?"

"Nothing, just bruises" She gritted her teeth and put on a smile "So why where you four up so late?"

"Just talking!" He lied "Wait, four?" and he looked round wondering where Peter was.

"If you're wondering where Peter is I just saw him running into the Great Hall, probably hunting for food" God this girl can read minds, Sirius thought to himself.

"Lily?" James murmured from a dreamy state on a chair.

"James!" She cried almost a little too longingly, getting an odd look from Sirius. But she just ignored it and ran over to hug James. Just as she got to him she remembered him lying to her and and urge inside her made her slapped him rite in the face.

"What was that for?" He muttered, slowly waking up.

"You know!" Then Lily just ran off out of the room and back to the infirmary.

"Lily?" Madam Pomphrey walked over to her and felt her forehead for a temperature. "What's wrong?"

"Madam Pomphrey I really don't think I'm ready to go outside yet" Lily faked an ill sounding voice, and pretender to have bad pains in her head, so Madam Pomphrey took her back to her old bed and ordered here to get some rest.

Lily had been lying on her bed doodling on the table next to her for half an hour before Professor Slughorn came bursting into the wing with a box of chocolates.

"Ah, Lily Evans! My favourite pupil!" He cheered, striding over and giving Lily a huge hug.

"Professor Slughorn!" Lily's face lit up. Slughorn was her favourite teacher, always inviting her to tea and is always interested in how well she's doing.

"Bit under the weather, eh" He chuckled, thrusting the box of chocolates into her arms "Shame you can't attend my next slug club get together, I'd booked the Dancing Skeletons, but, oh well I'll be sure to see you at the next one, hm?"

"Of course sir!" Lily crossed her heart to prove it.

"Anyway, Evans, must be off, meeting Hagrid in the three broomsticks for a butterbeer" and with that he was out the door and silence filled the ward, until Remus was rushed in on a stretcher.

"Oh God! Remus what's wrong?" Lily shouted, trying to get out of bed and catching a glimpse of Remus' scarred, bruised body and face.

"Miss Evans please go back to bed, this is none of your concern" Madam Pomphrey ushered her back to bed, ran back over to the bed where Remus was now lying, and shut the curtains around her.

All Lily heard after that was low talking and pained groans coming from behind the curtain, and when Madam Pomphrey finally emerged and opened the curtains Remus was fast asleep, bendages covering his arms, and a large bottle of medicine on the table by his bed.

After about half an hour later Remus began to stir, so Lily tiptoed over and sat by his bed.

"James?" Remus croaked, slowly opening his eyes.

"No it's Lily, what on earth happened?" She asked, stroking the bandages on his arm.

"I, ur, fell down the stairs" Remus lied with a really bad smile on his face.

"Yeah, right, what's with you Marauders and lying – badly as well!"

"All right Lily, I'm telling you this, and I'll understand if you never want to be near me again after you've found out"

"Remus I'd never do that to you, your too much of a good friend!" Lily insisted, staring at him and preparing herself for the truth.

"Ok, Lily. I'm a werewolf."

* * *

"Come ON James, get your game face on, we're gonna smash this, yeah" Remus slapped James on the back as he meekly slipped on his boots, deep in thought.

"Hm?" He muttered, grabbing his broomstick from his locker.

"James?" Sirius walked up to him and through a bucket of water over him. "SNAP OUT OF IT!"

"What the hell!" James recovered from the water, grabbed the bucket from Sirius, and whacked him round the head with it.

"Guys!" Darius Whithall the team captain raced over and grabbed the bucket off James "Both of you snap out of it! James, stop daydreaming, and Sirius, stop being a git!" and with that he strode off, grabbed his broom and walked into position.

"He's right Sirius, let's go." And they got into position and walked out onto the pitch, hit by a wall of screams and chanting.

They positioned themselves on their broomsticks, glaring into the eyes of their opponents, and kicked off into the air to fly into their places.

James looked down, but never really concentrated on the players, his eyes pierced the snitches glinting gold surface, and watched it like a hawk as it went sawing into the sky, and darting about in all directions, finally disappearing into the morbid grey clouds. And the whistle blew.

All hell broke loose underneath him, the quaffle been thrown about with pinpoint decision and sailing into the goal for the first time with ease.

"Ten points to Gryfindoor!" Grovesnor Tackle's voice echoed through the pitch, and that's when the Slytherins played dirty, but Sirius caught on, and sent bludgers soaring at their heads, knocking off their keeper so he had to be taken off, and replaced by the new back up.

The game was tougher then they first thought, and at one point James had to fly down and stop a quaffle going in a number of times, then when a bludger almost whacked him in the head he yanked the stick from Sirius and whacked it towards a Slytherin player, knocking her off her broom, earning a massive roar from the Gryfindoor crowd, they loved Sirius and James' relationship on the pitch, always helping each other out and having arguments.

Just as the two were getting into the act, and at one point Sirius hopped onto James' broom and did a twirl before hopping back onto his own, which the crowd loved, Darius yelled and James to start looking for the snitch because things were getting desperate out there. So James flew up to the sky and kept an eye out for the snitch.

Then he saw it. It was flying about the top of the teachers tower, so he bolted for it. The Slytherin seeker was quick to cotton on and raced after him, the want for glory speeding him on. James closed in on the snitch and chased it around the stand while the teachers spun round wanting to catch the action.

The snitch stopped racing about and hovered above Dumbledore's head, so James leapt off his broom, ran across the front of the stand, grabbed the snitch just before he reached the end and jumped off the edge.

"Pads!" He shouted, and Sirius flew over quick as a flash, caught him on his broom, and they flew back down to the ground, giving James enough time to run to the base of the stand and catch his broom, gigantic cheer ringing in his ears, and when he turned around he saw Sirius doing the worm on the floor in celebration.

* * *

On their way back up to the common room what seemed like thousands of students, even from Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff went up to James to congratulate him and pat him on the back.

"Prongs, you know what this means!" Sirius grinned.

"Marauder party!" They shouted at the same time, getting huge cheers from around the common room. Even though they were only in fifth year the Marauders knew how to throw a party, and even seventh years would turn up to witness their awesome party plans.

Although some did get out of hand, like the one where Sirius decided to start a water fight, and they ended up drenching Mcgonagall when she came in to congratulate them on their victory, of the one where he had snook in a dragon to scare everyone, but it just ended up setting the common room on fire, earning them a month long detention with Filch. Really all of the wacky party ideas where Sirius', so the party he was planning for that night was bound to be, well, remember-able.

* * *

**Ok, I may have said midnight yesterday, but I was bombarded with work and couldn't fit it in, but I've been typing non stop into these last two nights to get it finished :-) Do not forget to comment! Go on, right down there, type a comment :-) Anyway got to go, so that's**

**Mischief Managed :-)**


	9. Message to readers!

Oh, wow, sorry, it's been a while, hasn't it? Too much happened for me to update – exams AND my laptop broke, so until I get another one I can't really update till then. I'll probably be able to update in August/September Thank you for waiting so long!


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